Eighth Day of Pretending to Be an Alpha

Xie Songchen’s gaze made Chu Mo’s heart skip a beat. Chu Mo knew Xie Songchen was joking, but he still felt inexplicably nervous, afraid of being seen through.

“You better not joke with me like that,” Chu Mo said, swallowing and pretending to be calm, maintaining a cold expression. “After all, I’m an Alpha, just like you.”

In reality, Chu Mo was panicking inside. He was terrified that if Xie Songchen got upset, he might release his pheromones and challenge him. Fortunately, Xie Songchen wasn’t the kind of childish Alpha to do something like that.

Xie Songchen looked at Chu Mo but didn’t speak for a long time. Still, Chu Mo could feel the air around him growing noticeably colder. He had turned back into that icy, unapproachable mountain—just like usual—as if the person who had made that joke a moment ago was someone else entirely.

A moment later, Xie Songchen withdrew his gaze and stood up expressionlessly.

“Thanks for waking me up. I’m leaving now.”

Chu Mo couldn’t figure out which part of what he’d said had offended him, making him suddenly unhappy. Xie Songchen packed his backpack, slung it over one shoulder, and prepared to leave.

Chu Mo had always been a considerate boss. Even though his current role was to humiliate and strike down Xie Songchen, he still reminded him, “There’s no subway now.”

Xie Songchen paused, didn’t turn back, and responded with a slightly mocking tone, “I guess I know the subway schedule better than you, President Chu.”

After all, Xie Songchen took the subway to work every day, while Chu Mo rode in a top-of-the-line imported business car.

Chu Mo was taken aback. He didn’t expect Xie Songchen to self-deprecate like that. Chu Mo, who was used to humiliating Xie Songchen as a poor kid, suddenly didn’t know what to say.

“Ahem, I was just worried about you getting into trouble walking at night,” Chu Mo said, putting on a stern expression and a cold voice. “After all, tomorrow’s project negotiation is important. Don’t be late.”

Xie Songchen stopped in his tracks. He turned slightly, his sharp profile striking under the dim light.

“President Chu, your worry is unnecessary,” Xie Songchen said, his tone tinged with sarcasm. “After all, I’m an Alpha, just like you.”

He repeated Chu Mo’s earlier words verbatim, then left the office, leaving only his back in view.

Chu Mo was stunned. Why is this kid so concerned about being an Alpha?

Chu Mo thought for a long time and could only chalk it up to: Alphas are competitive, and Xie Songchen just can’t stand me.

⸻

The next day, the project negotiation arrived right on schedule. As Party A in the negotiation, Dingming had set the meeting location at a high-end restaurant near the CBD of H City. The restaurant was located close to Shengmo, which was regarded as an expression of sincerity from Dingming to Shengmo.

The restaurant was elegantly and professionally decorated, and many business executives chose it as a place for negotiations. Dingming booked a VIP private room, which was spacious and well-lit. It featured a long conference table, a projector, and other complete business facilities.

Chu Mo sat in the private room next door. He ordered a simple, low-cost meal and quietly waited for the negotiation to begin. The reason he didn’t show up personally was because, in this particular scene of the plot, he had no part to play.

Everyone was pessimistic about Xie Songchen’s chances. Without Chu Mo’s presence, they believed the negotiation was unlikely to succeed. But Chu Mo knew very well: Xie Songchen would definitely pull it off.

The person in charge of Dingming’s negotiation team was their CEO, Zhou Ming. Zhou Ming was an Alpha who had graduated from an Ivy League university abroad. He was a classic elite type, someone with a business mindset from a young age.

After joining Dingming, it hadn’t taken him long to climb to the CEO position. He frequently appeared at major press conferences and charity galas, and his refined appearance and eloquence won him many fans. Over time, he became something of a public figure, a human business card for Dingming.

But Chu Mo knew that Zhou Ming wasn’t as gentle and refined as he appeared.

In the novel, Zhou Ming was secretly a “pervert” who liked to play dirty. He was also one of the many admirers of Chu Yun. Unlike the other admirers, Zhou Ming harbored indecent and obsessive fantasies about Chu Yun.

Though he usually hid it well, he was a textbook hypocrite. In the later part of the novel, he even attempted to imprison Chu Yun. Fortunately, Xie Songchen discovered the plot in time and thwarted it. Once the other admirers learned about Zhou Ming’s behavior, they placed him on their revenge list.

They banded together to take him down—crippling one of his arms and eventually driving him out of H City. In the end, Zhou Ming’s fate was even worse than Chu Mo’s as a cannon fodder character.

Earlier, when Xie Songchen had conducted business with Zhou Ming, Zhou Ming had already seen Chu Yun’s photo and taken a liking to him. It could be said that part of Zhou Ming’s motivation to sign the contract was due to that interest.

With his sharp instincts, Xie Songchen had already sensed something off about Zhou Ming, but he had yet to uncover any concrete evidence. Today would be his first face-to-face meeting with this so-called pervert.

Inside the VIP private room, Zhou Ming arrived early—as usual. He always made a point to arrive before the meeting, thoroughly research the other party, and prepare the best leverage for the negotiation.

Many people said Zhou Ming was like a hunter who preferred to lay in wait in advance.

“Shengmo Group…” Zhou Ming murmured, typing the name into major social platforms. On any platform, entering “Shengmo Group” would bring up one associated name: “Chu Mo.”

Zhou Ming was very familiar with this name. In all of H City, the most eye-catching figure was the young President Chu. However, Zhou Ming had never met him in person.

Driven by curiosity, Zhou Ming clicked on the hashtag #ShengmoGroupChuMo.

Soon, a stream of news clips and videos popped up. Zhou Ming was slightly startled. Chu Mo was young and handsome, the heir of the Chu Group, and had a legendary entrepreneurial track record. He had amassed a large fanbase across major platforms.

Fans had edited countless videos of him—clips of Chu Mo attending charity events with female companions, his expression calm and reserved as he nodded toward the camera. There was a faint smile on his lips, and the woman beside him, dressed in red, smiled warmly, gazing at him with admiration.

Even such a simple slow-motion video had drawn hundreds of thousands of likes and tens of thousands of comments.

Zhou Ming couldn’t resist clicking into the comments section.

“Finally know what a top Alpha in a wealthy family looks like in novels.” — 100,000 likes

“I heard he donated five million at that charity dinner… I love him even more.” — 120,000 likes

“I want to be stepped on by Chu Mo.” — 200,000 likes

Zhou Ming’s gaze lingered on the third comment.

The next second, he reached out and tugged at his tie, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

Zhou Ming was an Alpha, and had never been drawn to the appearance of his own kind. But this time, he couldn’t help but like the video.

Just then, both negotiation teams entered the private room. Zhou Ming tucked away his phone and looked expectantly toward Shengmo’s team.

But to his disappointment, Shengmo’s representative wasn’t Chu Mo.

Upon confirming that Chu Mo wasn’t present, Zhou Ming frowned and asked Xie Songchen, “Where’s your boss?”

“He’s very busy,” Xie Songchen replied calmly as he sat down. “But if Mr. Zhou agrees to sign, he’ll appear.”

“Such an important project, and your boss doesn’t even show up?” Zhou Ming’s tone carried clear dissatisfaction.

Everyone in the room exchanged awkward glances—wasn’t Dingming already informed in advance? Zhou Ming’s secretary leaned over and whispered in his ear, “Mr. Zhou, President Chu did inform us he wouldn’t attend the negotiation.”

Zhou Ming had indeed said it was fine at the time.

“I see,” Zhou Ming raised an eyebrow, staring at Xie Songchen. “Then I guess I’ll have to sign the contract early if I want to meet President Chu, huh?”

Xie Songchen was taken aback. He frowned slightly, not understanding what this guy was trying to pull.

“After all,” Zhou Ming paused and raised the corners of his lips, half-jokingly, “such a good-looking Alpha—I want to see him for myself.”

Xie Songchen’s fingers involuntarily tightened. His brows furrowed deeply.

In the silence, he said, “President Chu has nothing to do with this negotiation. Sorry to disappoint Mr. Zhou. Let’s move to the main discussion to avoid wasting both parties’ time.”

Zhou Ming sensed the hostility in the young Alpha’s voice. He studied Xie Songchen for a while, then suddenly let out a low chuckle, as if he had seen through something.

The negotiation quickly got to the point. The two sides had already been in contact several times beforehand. After enduring Chu Mo’s series of “humiliations and strikes,” Xie Songchen had come thoroughly prepared. Dingming’s team was highly satisfied with Shengmo’s offer.

Even Zhou Ming—known as a “hunter”—couldn’t find any flaws in their proposal at that moment.

Chu Mo sat in the adjacent private room, watching the clock tick away on the wall. He mentally calculated that, according to the original plot, the time was almost up.

As the negotiation neared its conclusion, Xie Songchen handed the contract to Zhou Ming and calmly said, “If Mr. Zhou has no objections, you can sign directly.”

But Zhou Ming didn’t sign.

Instead, under everyone’s gaze, he curled his lips into a smile and suddenly said, “I can sign—but before that, I want to meet Chu Mo in person.”

“You sign first,” Xie Songchen looked at Zhou Ming and frowned slightly. “After signing, President Chu will naturally appear.”

Zhou Ming crossed his long legs and smiled elegantly in his light-colored suit. “Otherwise, how about I add his personal WeChat first? What do you think?”

Xie Songchen’s fingers, gripping the contract, involuntarily tightened.

Everyone in the room was confused as to why Zhou Ming had suddenly made such a request.

After a moment of silence, Xie Songchen’s voice grew even colder. “You sign first. Then we can discuss other conditions.”

The two Alphas sat across from each other, and the air between them grew tense.

Zhou Ming didn’t lose his composure. He stared at Xie Songchen for a long time before speaking again, his tone half-teasing, “What’s wrong, Little Xie? Reluctant to give it up?”

Xie Songchen’s eyes turned icy cold.

The next second, Zhou Ming added with a smirk, “Or is it that I’m too charming, and you’re afraid President Chu will like me?”

The private room fell into deathly silence.

Unable to endure any longer, Xie Songchen suddenly stood up, one hand planted firmly on the conference table, the other grabbing Zhou Ming by the collar.

“Stop making such boring jokes.”

Everyone in the room was shocked!

This intern, Xie Songchen, had actually dared to do such a thing to Zhou Ming?!

Zhou Ming, too, was stunned. But the next moment, he couldn’t help but laugh.

He stared fearlessly at Xie Songchen, leaned close to his ear, and whispered something only the two of them could hear.

When he leaned back, his lips were curled in a pleased smile. Meanwhile, Xie Songchen’s face had gone completely ashen.

⸻

A minute later, Chu Mo was still in the private room, waiting for word on the signing. He frowned, confused, his fingers unconsciously tapping the sofa.

Just then, Li Shuo burst through the door, panic written all over his face.

“Something’s wrong, President Chu—something happened!”

Chu Mo was stunned. According to the original plot, by now, the negotiation should have been successfully completed.

“What happened?” he asked, frowning. “Why do you look so scared?”

“Xie Songchen, he—he,” Li Shuo stammered, eyes wide like he’d seen a ghost. “He punched Zhou Ming!”

Chu Mo’s eyes widened in disbelief. “What did you say?!”